The spreadsheet released by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, or FDLE, raises questions about how the state is gathering and studying epidemiological and demographic information about the coronavirus. A health department online “dashboard” updated daily is inconsistent with the information released Wednesday by FDLE.

“Our two lists will never match,” said Stephen J. Nelson, chief medical examiner in Polk, Highlands and Hardee counties, who is chairman of the commission. “They’re not counting snowbirds, tourists. But their number is higher than ours. It’s 1,399. Ours is 1,321. How is their case number higher than ours?”

He said that on Monday. The numbers have risen since then, but DOH continues to have a higher death count. Also, DOH recently began to document non-resident tests.

“We are the only ones under Florida law who can issue a death certificate. I don’t have an explanation,” Nelson said. “I have no explanation as to why their number is higher than ours and growing by the day.”